She started out as a busker in Dublin. Today, she has fans the world over: it's a dream come true for Allie Sherlock of Ireland. Her powerful voice thrills listeners by the millions.
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00:00 ♪ I cried in high when I was king ♪
00:03 ♪ I played it hard and fast 'cause I had everything ♪
00:07 ♪ I walked away, you want me dead ♪
00:11 - This voice has helped Ally Sherlock
00:13 go from being a young street musician to a viral sensation.
00:17 She sings cover songs of popular hits
00:19 on Dublin's Grafton Street, a main shopping district,
00:22 and a haven for buskers.
00:24 (audience applauding)
00:25 - Busking on the street is like very unpredictable.
00:28 You never know what can happen.
00:30 It can be, it's a good and a bad place to be sometimes,
00:33 but mostly good.
00:35 You can have people from all over the world.
00:39 You can get so many opportunities.
00:40 You don't know who's passing down Grafton Street.
00:42 ♪ Took a supermarket flight ♪
00:44 - Ally comes here nearly every weekend to perform.
00:47 She started busking when she was just 11.
00:50 ♪ A cup of tea from the cup ♪
00:53 (gentle music)
00:54 ♪ I dropped a photo out ♪
00:56 - This video with her rendition
00:58 of Ed Sheeran's "Supermarket Flowers"
01:00 changed her life forever.
01:02 (gentle music)
01:04 ♪ Took a getaway supercar ♪
01:06 ♪ And some animals ♪
01:08 - That song is very special to me
01:09 because it was the first song that went viral.
01:12 It started off my career, got me on the Ellen Show.
01:15 It really just started off everything for me.
01:19 ♪ Billie Jean is not my lover ♪
01:22 - Now at 18, she has over five million subscribers
01:25 on YouTube with her most popular video
01:27 garnering over 58 million views.
01:30 ♪ Billie Jean is not my son ♪
01:31 (gentle music)
01:34 - Her musical talents have taken her to Paris
01:39 where she was a supporting act
01:41 for the pop band One Republic in 2020.
01:44 And to Manchester for the Queen's Jubilee celebrations
01:47 in 2022.
01:48 (audience applauding)
01:50 And most recently to this summer's Forest Fest in Ireland.
01:53 (upbeat music)
01:56 But one of her most memorable moments
02:01 was when she appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres Show
02:03 in California.
02:05 - Please welcome 12 year old Ally Sherlock.
02:08 - Looking at it now and thinking about it,
02:10 I was like, it was a huge deal.
02:11 And I was so nervous and watching the video back,
02:14 I'm like, I can see how nervous I was.
02:16 ♪ And I must have always known ♪
02:20 ♪ That this would be ♪
02:22 But as what age as I was 12,
02:25 I'm proud of myself that I got out there
02:27 in front of those people, in front of those big cameras
02:29 and in front of Ellen herself.
02:32 'Cause I loved her show, but it was amazing.
02:35 - At home in Cork, Ireland is where it all began.
02:38 Ally started playing music at the age of nine,
02:40 the same year her mother suddenly died.
02:43 She turned to writing music as a way of coping.
02:46 - Her death impacted my songwriting.
02:51 Like I was writing a lot of songs about it
02:54 and I think it helped me escape from everything about it.
02:59 And I'm not good about talking about my feelings.
03:04 So I always kind of, in every situation,
03:06 I write a song and I always feel better.
03:08 - Mark Sherlock, Ally's father, is also her manager.
03:14 While many record companies have approached her for deals,
03:17 she hasn't signed with any yet.
03:18 (indistinct chatter)
03:22 - It's to protect her.
03:24 You hear so many negative stories about artists out there
03:29 and their mental health,
03:31 their health has deteriorated so much
03:34 from working in the industry.
03:36 And look, she's just 18 now
03:38 and my main thing is to protect her right now.
03:41 - Instead, she produces and sells her albums on her own.
03:47 She has a studio at home where she records her songs.
03:50 (soft music)
03:52 ♪ You said heaven is a place on earth ♪
04:02 ♪ Oh, if you feel no hurt ♪
04:06 ♪ I don't feel the same ♪
04:07 ♪ Yeah, I'm hurting every day ♪
04:10 ♪ Take me back to Central Bay ♪
04:13 - Well, that song you just heard there,
04:14 that is one of my own ones.
04:16 But I have four albums
04:18 and half of one of those albums is original, so it's mixed.
04:22 - Ally uses Grafton Street to test new material.
04:27 This is where her heart really lies.
04:29 ♪ I'm the queen of catching feelings ♪
04:33 ♪ I let it burn, let it slip through my fingers ♪
04:38 - This is my first trip to Dublin
04:40 and I wanted to see if I could catch her
04:41 and I got lucky and I did.
04:43 She's very famous, you know,
04:45 have a look at YouTube, so that's why I know
04:47 and keep following her everywhere.
04:49 - Yeah, we love her, she's great.
04:51 Yeah!
04:52 - Ally has competition on Grafton Street,
04:55 which has a long tradition
04:57 of hosting street musicians every weekend.
04:59 How long can her fans expect to see her playing there?
05:07 - I'll keep playing on these streets until I can
05:11 and until as long as they'll have me.
05:14 ♪ You got to see the first ♪
05:16 - Ally Sherlock, a talented and rising star
05:19 making her mark from the humble streets of Dublin.
05:22 ♪ When God took me back ♪
05:24 ♪ He said, "Alleluia, you're home" ♪
05:29 (audience applauding)
05:32 - Thank you very much.